Buffy the Vampire Slayer/Recap/S6 E22 Grave

Is this the master plan? You're going to stop me by telling me you love me?

Willow beats Giles and plans to end the world herself. Spike passes the Demon Trials and gets back his soul.

• Action Film Quiet Drama Scene: Giles talking to Buffy in the training room.
• All Up to You: Xander saves the world while Buffy is otherwise occupied.
• Back-to-Back Badasses: Dawn and Buffy fighting in the hole.
• Battle Discretion Shot / Off with His Head: Spike tosses a couple of demon heads at the foot of the Scary Cave Demon to show he's passed the first stage of the Trials.
• Black Eyes of Evil / Evil Sounds Deep: A deep voice and Black Corneas Of Evil mark Dark!Willow turning pro.
• Black Magic vs. White Magic: Dark!Willow's magic draws its strength from her rage. The magic she steals from Giles comes from love.
• Book Ends / Rule of Symbolism: Buffy starts Season 6 by clawing her way out of her grave into the night, beginning a year-long Heroic BSOD. She ends the season climbing out of her hole into the light, having rediscovered the value of living.
• Continuity Nod: Willow brings up the argument she had with Giles in "Flooded". Buffy tells Giles of the events of "Normal Again". Kingman's Bluff is the same place Angel tried to kill himself in the Season 3 episode "Amends".
• Cooldown Hug: After her power and rage fades, Willow collapses sobbing in Xander's arms.
• Description Cut: "There's no temple on Kingman's Bluff." Cut to Willow pulling the temple spire out of the ground.
• Did You Get a New Haircut?: A Crowning Moment of Heartwarming for Giles is when he suddenly notices that Buffy cut her hair. Group Hug!
• Disney Death: Giles.
• Diving Save: Buffy to Giles and later the Duo.

Dark!Willow: You're always saving everyone. It's kinda pesky.

• Do Not Go Gentle: Dark!Willow creates the dirt and root golems because she thinks Buffy deserves to go down fighting.
• Double Standard Rape (Male on Male): The Duo find themselves being eyed lecherously by a truck driver.
• The End of the World as We Know It
• Expository Hairstyle Change: Willow's hair returns to its natural red color as she breaks down crying in Xander's arms.
• First-Name Basis: Willow taunts Giles by calling him 'Rupert', but switches back to 'Giles' when she absorbs his magic and suddenly starts to empathise with him again.
• Flechette Storm / Mind Over Matter: Dark!Willow sends Buffy's training weapons hurling at Giles, who blocks them with the training dummy.
• Geographic Flexibility: I've never seen that arboretum next to the cemetery before...
• Great Balls of Fire
• Group Hug: Buffy/Giles/Anya
• Is That the Best You Can Do?: Willow to Giles, and Spike to the demon.
• It Got Worse

Anya: Things just got a whole lot worse. Buffy: How worse? Anya: End of the world worse. Willow's going to destroy it.

• Love Makes You Evil and destroy the world.
• Mercy Kill: What Willow was trying to do except on a global scale.
• Mind Control: Willow gets Anya to free her.
• Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: Lampshaded.

Anya: In hindsight, it would have been better if you (Giles) didn't come back and Willow would never have taken your magic and become like ten times stronger. That would've been a plus.

• The Nicknamer

Xander: Hey, Black-Eyed Girl. Whatcha doin'?

• Open Says Me: Spoofed; Xander is shown hammering ineffectually at the kind of crypt door that Buffy kicks open as a Running Gag.
• Power Glows / Eyes of Gold: Spike getting his soul.
• The Power of Friendship: Xander's friendship is what eventually brings down Dark Willow.
• "The Reason You Suck" Speech: Dark!Willow to Giles.

"You're such a hypocrite. Waltzing in here with your borrowed magicks. So you can tell me what? Magic's bad? Behave? Be a good girl? (chuckles) Well, I ... I don't think you're in any position to be telling me what to do. (camera pans up to show Giles pinned to the ceiling)

• Rule of Symbolism: One of the Trials involves Spike being covered in scarab beetles, which were sacred to the ancient Egyptians who associated it with the sun which brought renewal, rebirth, and more importantly resurrection. During mummification a stone scarab was placed over the heart of the mummy to ensure the eternal endurance of the human soul as the person made the journey into the Afterworld.
• Rule of Three

Buffy: Giles! Anya: Giles! Dark!Willow: Daddy's home. I'm in wicked trouble now.

• Saying Too Much: Xander mentions Spike's Attempted Rape of Buffy to Dawn.
• Shock and Awe
• Screw This, I'm Outta Here: The Duo do a runner for Mexico.
• Special Effect Failure: Ropes can be seen holding up the satanic church spire as it thrusts out of the ground.
• Talking the Monster to Death
• Tempting Fate: Anya telling Dark!Willow her mind control mojo won't work on her.
• Tension-Cutting Laughter: Buffy lists all the ways the Scoobies have stuffed up since he left, ending with "And I'm sleeping with Spike." She then looks nervous as she waits for Giles to tear strips off her...only for Giles to burst into laughter. After a moment Buffy can't help but join him.
• This Is Your Brain on Evil: Willow when she absorbs Giles' magic. "Woah! Who's your supplier?"
• Throw It In: Anthony Head started Corpsing during the scene where SMG talks of what had wrong since he'd gone. Joss kept it because he thought the scene worked better that way.
• Took a Level In Badass: Buffy looks surprised when her little sister decapitates a dirt golem.

Dawn: What? You think I never watched you?

• Trash the Set: After a Battle Discretion Shot Willow and Giles are shown facing off in the wrecked Magic Box.
• Walk in Chime In

Giles: Willow has killed a human being. How will she be able to live with herself? Dark!Willow: I wouldn't worry about that. Willow doesn't live here anymore.

• Wham! Line

Spike: So you'll give me what I want. Make me what I was. So Buffy can get what she deserves. Demon: Very well. We will return...your soul.

• What Do You Mean Its Not Symbolic: The human race is once more saved by a carpenter.
• What the Hell, Hero?: Dawn asking Buffy why she let her go to Spike's after his Attempted Rape of Buffy.
• Woobie, Destroyer of Worlds: Willow, Destroyer of the World.
• Xanatos Gambit: Willow steals Giles' magic from him but it ends up connecting her with the suffering of all humanity. It is this empathy that leaves her open to Xander's appeal to their friendship.